Alert archive / North Carolina / Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in 2003
Severe Thunderstorm Warning 91, NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued this severe thunderstorm warning at May 5, 2003, 10:40 PM EDT for Macon County, North Carolina; Rabun County, Georgia. It was in force for 50 min. No storm report in the archive falls inside the area while it was in force.
The area
The outline as issued.
The facts
- Issued
- May 5, 2003, 10:40 PM EDT (02:40 UTC)
- Expired
- May 5, 2003, 11:30 PM EDT
- In force
- 50 min
- Issued by
- NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC
- Area
- Counties, with a storm outline in the text
Counties Rabun County, GA, Macon County, NC
The radar
The Greer radar (KGSP), 118 km from the middle of the area, began a volume at 02:42 UTC, the scan nearest the moment this went out.
Open the radar archive at this moment
The archived warnings, watches and discussions in force at that minute are drawn over the scan, this one among them.
Did it verify
Not verified. The Iowa Environmental Mesonet's Cow found no qualifying storm report inside this severe thunderstorm warning while it was in force. That is not proof nothing happened: reports are thin where few people live.
Cow counts a report within 15 km of the polygon while the warning was in force: a tornado for a tornado warning; hail of 1 inch or more, a gust of 58 mph or more or wind damage for a severe thunderstorm warning; a flash flood report for a flash flood warning.
The nearest sounding before it
Peachtre/Fal Fld, GA (KFFC), launched 00:00Z, 2.7 hours before the alert went out and 203 km from the middle of its area. This is the routine balloon launch nearest before it, the air the forecaster had in hand, not a measurement taken for the alert.
- Mixed-layer CAPE
- 1313 J/kg
- Mixed-layer CIN
- -36 J/kg
- Mixed-layer LCL
- 782 m above ground
- 0-6 km bulk shear
- 62 kt
- 0-1 km storm-relative helicity
- 211 m²/s²
- 0-3 km storm-relative helicity
- 399 m²/s²
- Significant tornado parameter
- 3.1
- Supercell composite
- 11.6
The text
As transmitted, in the capitals the NWS used until 2016.
000
WUUS52 KGSP 060240
SVRGSP
GAC241-NCC113-060330-
BULLETIN - IMMEDIATE BROADCAST REQUESTED
SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING
NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC
1040 PM EDT MON MAY 5 2003
THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IN GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG HAS ISSUED A
* SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WARNING FOR...
RABUN COUNTY IN NORTHEAST GEORGIA
MACON COUNTY IN WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA
* UNTIL 1130 PM EDT
* AT 1040 PM EDT...NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE RADAR INDICATED A SEVERE
THUNDERSTORM 14 MILES EAST OF HAYESVILLE...OR ABOUT 3 MILES SOUTH
OF RAINBOW SPRINGS...MOVING EAST AT 40 MPH.
* THE SEVERE THUNDERSTORM WILL BE NEAR...
OTTO AT 1050 PM EDT.
SCALY AT 1055 PM EDT.
DILLARD AT 1103 PM EDT.
HIGHLANDS AT 1105 PM EDT.
SKY VALLEY AT 1110 PM EDT.
PEOPLE IN THE PATH OF THIS SEVERE THUNDERSTORM SHOULD BE ALERT FOR
LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND LOCALLY HEAVY
RAIN CAN OCCUR WITH ANY THUNDERSTORM.
LAT...LON 3516 8365 3510 8379 3500 8351 3486 8358
3484 8351 3476 8350 3475 8338 3503 8314
3531 8335
$$
BURRUS/DICARLOWhat forecasters said that day
The local office's own words before this severe thunderstorm warning went out, as it sent them, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service text.
NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC wrote its last area forecast discussion before this severe thunderstorm warning went out at May 5, 9:20 PM EDT, 1 hour 20 minutes earlier.
Area forecast discussion, May 5, 9:20 PM EDT, 1 hour 20 minutes before
AREA FORECAST DISCUSSION NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 920 PM EDT MON MAY 5 2003 FLOODING CONTINUES TO BE OUR MAIN CONCERN THIS EVENING AS TSTMS DISPT WHEN THEY HIT THE REMNANTS OF THE WEDGE OVER THE CAROLINAS. MINOR FLOODING HAS BEEN REPORTED IN THE MOUNTAINS WITH ONE BRIDGE WASHED OUT 2 HOURS AGO. PLAN TO KEEP THE WATCH IN EFFECT THROUGH THE NIGHT. SVR TSTMS ACTIVITY IS STILL OFF TO THE WEST. 18Z MODEL RUNS SEEM TO PUSH MOST ACTIVITY TO OUR SOUTH TONIGHT ALONG THERMAL BOUNDARY THEN REFOCUS TOMORROW IN NORTH CAROLINA AS A SERIES OF IMPULSES MOVE ACROSS THE MOUNTAINS. NO MAJOR CHANGES EXPECTED IN EVENING UPDATE EXCEPT TO MODIFY TONIGHTS MINS TO FIT CURRENT LOWER TEMPS. .GSP... GA...FLOOD WATCH FOR TONIGHT AND TUE MORNING FOR ZONES GAZ010...GAZ017>018. NC...FLOOD WATCH FOR TONIGHT AND TUE MORNING FOR ZONES NCZ048...NCZ051>053...NCZ058>059...NCZ062>065. SC...FLOOD WATCH FOR TONIGHT AND TUE MORNING FOR ZONES SCZ001>002...SCZ004>005. DICARLO
Hazardous weather outlook, May 5, 4:53 AM EDT, 17 hours 47 minutes before
GAZ010-017-018-026-028-029-NCZ033>037-048>059-062>072-082-SCZ001>014- 019-051100- HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 453 AM EDT MON MAY 5 2003 THIS HAZARDOUS WEATHER OUTLOOK IS FOR WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA... UPSTATE SOUTH CAROLINA...AND EXTREME NORTHEAST GEORGIA. .DAY ONE...TODAY SEVERE THUNDERSTORMS ARE POSSIBLE TODAY...SOME WITH TORNADOES...LARGE HAIL AND DAMAGING WINDS. .DAYS TWO THROUGH SEVEN... NO HAZARDOUS WEATHER IS EXPECTED AT THIS TIME. .SPOTTER INFORMATION STATEMENT... SPOTTER ACTIVATION MAY BE REQUIRED TODAY. RB
In the hours before
Special weather statement, May 5, 9:56 PM EDT, 44 minutes before
NCZ058-062-060245- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 956 PM EDT MON MAY 5 2003 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IS MONITORING A VERY STRONG THUNDERSTORM IN SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA. THIS STORM HAS A HISTORY OF PRODUCING SEVERE WEATHER. WHILE THE STRONGEST PART OF THE STORM WILL MOVE THROUGH CHEROKEE AND CLAY COUNTIES...PERSONS IN SOUTHERN GRAHAM AND MACON COUNTIES SHOULD BE PREPARED FOR STRONG GUSTY WINDS...FREQUENT LIGHTNING AND HAIL. LOCAL FLOODING IS POSSIBLE IN HEAVIER DOWNPOURS. MOTORISTS ARE URGED TO USE EXTREME CARE. MOST FLOOD FATALITIES OCCUR IN VEHICLES DURING THE NIGHT. THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE PROGRESS OF THIS DEVELOPING WEATHER SITUATION. DICARLO
Special weather statement, May 5, 10:17 PM EDT, 23 minutes before
GAZ010-060315- SPECIAL WEATHER STATEMENT NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE GREENVILLE-SPARTANBURG SC 1015 PM EDT MON MAY 5 THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE IS MONITORING A VERY STRONG THUNDERSTORM IN SOUTHWEST NORTH CAROLINA. THIS STORM HAS A HISTORY OF PRODUCING SEVERE WEATHER. AT 1015 PM RADAR INDICATED THE STORM WAS MOVING INTO CLAY COUNTY NORTH CAROLINA. IT IS EXPECTED TO MOVE SOOUTHEASTWARD ACROSS NORTHERN RABUN COUNTY BETWEEN 1030 AND 1100 PM. THIS STORM IS SLOWLY WEAKENING BUT IT CAN STILL PRODUCE STRONG GUSTY WINDS...FREQUENT LIGHTNING...HAIL AND VERY HEAVY RAIN. MOTORISTS IN RABUN COUNTY ARE URGED TO USE CAUTION IN THIS STORM. REMEMBER MOST FLOOD FATALITIES OCCUR IN VEHICLES AT NIGHT. THE NATIONAL WEATHER SERVICE WILL CONTINUE TO MONITOR THE PROGRESS OF THIS DEVELOPING WEATHER SITUATION. DICARLO
The office that day
Everything else NWS Greenville-Spartanburg, SC issued on the same UTC day.
| Issued | Product | Office | Counties | Lasted |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 5, 11:19 PM EDT | Severe Thunderstorm Warning | GSP | Jackson | 41 min |
| May 6, 6:05 AM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | GSP | Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon, Swain | 4 hr |
| May 6, 8:00 AM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | GSP | Buncombe, Madison | 4 hr |
| May 6, 10:02 AM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | GSP | Graham, Haywood, Jackson, Macon, Swain | 118 min |
| May 6, 12:00 PM EDT | Flash Flood Warning | GSP | Buncombe, Graham, Haywood, Henderson, Jackson, Macon and 3 more | 4 hr |
| May 6, 1:42 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | GSP | Franklin | 33 min |
| May 6, 2:04 PM EDT | Tornado Warning | GSP | Elbert, Hart | 56 min |
Nearby
Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in North Carolina, 2003Severe Thunderstorm Warnings in Georgia, 2003Every severe thunderstorm warning in 2003
Sources
The product and its follow-ups from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet's archive of National Weather Service and Storm Prediction Center text; the sounding from the Mesonet's radiosonde archive; radar from the NEXRAD Level II archive.